Liberty Park outside of Solon is a well-maintained series of trails set in the Carolinian forest with maples and large twisty vines that give it a jungle appearance. With three devotee families to form this morning’s team, our venturing through the green space became a zone for Tarzan play for the kids. They felt liberated. We all did.
On the way to Parma, a suburban section for the Sunday devotions, we came upon a place called Twinsburg where an annual procession draws the crowds to see t
Since its founding in 1966, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) – often known as the “Hare Krishna” movement – has grown into a worldwide network of temples and outreach programs. In city squares and remote villages around the globe, ISKCON temples welcome people from all backgrounds to chant the sacred “Hare Krishna” mantra, partake in communal worship, and celebrate India’s rich devotional traditions. Beneath the familiar robes and melodies lies a thriving culture of s
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness, lovingly known as ISKCON, is more than a spiritual organization—it is a movement that embodies the timeless beauty of devotion, community, and divine love. Born from the vision of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in 1966, ISKCON has blossomed into a global sanctuary for seekers of spiritual truth, drawing hearts from every corner of the world into the warm embrace of Krishna consciousness.
At the heart of ISKCON’s beauty lies **Bhakti**—pur
By Rsi Kumara Dasa
We are delighted to announce the completion of a monumental literary and devotional achievement in Gaudiya Vaishnava history: Danavir Goswami has successfully finished the printing of the Sri Garga-samhita in thirty volumes, the culmination of a 20-year endeavor. Each volume features the original Sanskrit text, Roman transliteration, English synonyms, translation, elaborate commentary, and thirty-two pages of colored plates per hardbound volume. The complete sets will be avai
By Jaya Krishna Das
The Bhaktivedanta Players have been a beacon of Krishna-conscious cultural awareness in the UK since their founding in 1977. They’ve performed not only across Britain but internationally too. My journey with the troupe began at thirteen, when my brothers and I were asked to play monkeys in a Ramayana production at Bhaktivedanta Manor. That moment sparked a lifelong passion for drama, transforming it into a spiritual practice and an offering of love to Lord Krishna.
Over the y
People in our community aren’t always punctual. The standard joke is, “We follow IST,” translated as Indian Standard Time or ISKCON Standard Time. Seriously, I don’t laugh at it anymore. Shobam is in his twenties, and he joined our walking team which agreed to meet at 8 AM for the start of the trek. When the topic came up about the chronic lateness, I said to Shobam, “Can your generation change that?”
“I’m going to try,” he said.
The Ledges Trails at Cuyahoga National Park is just idea
The spiritual or eternal self is not the sensations which the soul experiences within and from the body. “yantra rudrani mayaya”. What we directly experience is not actually the external hard physical material world, but a REPRESENTATION built by the mind, within the networks of the body’s brain, nervous and glandular systems, life air, etc., but primarily the brain, of the occupied body, exactly like a person experiencing the holo-deck from Star Trek fame. Subject, also, to defects.
By Tamoha
In this important and timely podcast, Basu Ghosh Das, Secretary of the ISKCON India Bureau, joins members of the ISKCON India Scholars Board (IISB)—Krishna Kirti Das (IISB Convenor) and Sridhar Srinivasa Das (author) —to discuss the recent Supreme Court proceedings held on 16 May, 2025, concerning the long-standing legal dispute between ISKCON Bangalore and ISKCON Mumbai.
The discussion explores the ongoing debate around the validity of initiations conducted under the Ritvik system. Drawing from
The Founder-Acharya of ISKCON, Srila Prabhupada, registered ISKCON in India as a society and public trust in Mumbai in 1971. It was his desire that there should be only one ISKCON, i.e., the one he registered in Mumbai, and all the other temples and centres would be under its administrative control. This is also evident from the fact that, during his lifetime, Srila Prabhupada had opened several ISKCON temples, including Vrindavan, Mayapur, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and New Delhi, and they functioned
By Aditya Devi Dasi
We have opened Govinda’s Kadamba Kafe in New York City right at the front of our temple building in Brooklyn, offering a fresh new take on prasadam distribution in the city. The opening ceremony took place on the auspicious day of Aksaya Tritya. Jayadvaita Swami, Dilip Chauhan, the Deputy Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Innovation at the NYC Mayor’s Office, Temple President Hansarupa Dasa, Arcita Dasa, and many other Vaishnavas came for the occasion. A puja was perf
The soft touches to the day, after a rather bland phase at Newark Airport, was a visit to Shyama Kund’s childhood home in Cleveland. Also, I might add that a great trek with Srimala down a trail made the afternoon what it was – fine and fun. Both Srimala and I were fascinated to hear from Shyama Kund about his work at Nasa in Florida. Who wouldn’t be intrigued with the space mission, the planets, the moon, and Mars, and whatever achievements may have come through, if any? Shyama reminded us
Question: Maharaj, sometimes we try to restrain our urges such as eating less. For some time we can but after a while we feel dissatisfied and cannot continue with our practices. How can we practically apply this in our lives and maintain the standard?
Answer: Everything should be done with moderation. There is a famous saying: ‘Haste means waste. Slow and steady wins the race.’ If we are given something very palatable we may say, ‘No, no. Take it away.’ But inside we are meditating on that sen
A concise refresher on Lord Krishna’s immortal teachings.
In 1968 His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada published the Bhagavad-gita As It Is, which has since sold tens of millions of copies in dozens of languages. As a lifetime devotee of Krishna and a consummate Sanskritist, Srila Prabhupada spells out the clear conclusions of the Gita that are often obscured by arms-length commentators with their own agenda. Srila Prabhupada’s purports (commentaries) illum
By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi
The ISKCON History Archive Project, led by Lokarama Das, is an initiative endeavoring to collect memories and build an archive about ISKCON’s history following Srila Prabhupada’s departure in 1977, which has remained largely undocumented.
While the early years of the movement, under Srila Prabhupada’s leadership, have been well-documented by multiple books, including the multi-volume Prabhupada Lilamrita, the decades that followed were not, explained Lokarama.
Enthusiastic devotees from ISKCON Surkhet recently placed copies of Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is and the Krishna book in all the rooms of one of the city’s most beautiful hotels, the Siddhartha Resort.
Surkhet is located in a picturesque valley in the mid-western region of Nepal, about 600 kilometers west of Kathmandu. Known for its natural beauty and growing infrastructure, the city has seen significant growth in the past few decades, ensuring these books will be available to many
Perth, Australia — April 2025:
With hearts full of gratitude and spirits lifted in devotion, over one hundred devotees from across Perth gathered for the fourth annual Bhakti Vriksha Camp, organised by ISKCON Perth, held from April 19 to 21, 2025, at the scenic Bickley Outdoor Recreation Camp in Perth Hills. The retreat marked another profound milestone in the community’s shared spiritual journey.
The event was guided by His Grace Gokuleswar Prabhu, whose insights, compassion, and wisdom infused
In New Jersey the people are encountering a second day of full-on drizzle and rain. Haripad and I managed to sneak out of the house to do some walking around the lake. Again, I informed him of some plants that, like most of us, we don’t notice or ignore as weeds.
“There’s the horsetail plant, good for the nervous system and your bones. It can be used like a tea,” I explained. I also cautioned, “There’s poison ivy. Don’t touch! The rash you’ll get is very irritating. And there’s that i
A. Introduction
1. What is vanaprastha?
The word vanaprastha is composed of the words vana, meaning “forest” and prastha, meaning “to go,” so a vanaprastha is “One has gone to the forest.” Vanaprastha is an asrama in the Vedic varnasrama system. An asrama can be both a physical and mental place and refers to “a place where one cultivates spiritual life, where culture of the spiritual is foremost.”
The vanaprastha order is complete retirement from householder life, a time when one prepares ones
By Bhakti-lata Dasi
In January 2022, the prison system in the USA started the process of converting all inmate mail to an electronic system. The state of Florida was the first to transition, gradually followed by Texas, then Missouri, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. In the near future, the other states will follow this trend as well.
This means that most of the inmates in those states are no longer allowed to receive paper letters, books, magazines, and newsletters. All snail
In the Srimad Bhagavatam 7 canto it is said: The Supreme Personality of Godhead and His devotee know how to use properly lust, anger, greed, illusion, pride and envy.
In the Bhagavad Gita 3.37, Srila Prabhupada says: “…Therefore the origin of lust is also in the Supreme. If, therefore, lust is transformed into love for the Supreme, or transformed into Krishna consciousness – or, in other words, desiring everything for Krishna – then both lust and wrath can be spiritualized.
Hanuman, the great
